Thus spoke PM Narendra Modi from the Red Fort on Independence Day

26/08/2023

Ramesh Chander

(Samaj Weekly)- I wanted to write earlier on the speech of PM Narendra Modi delivered from the ramparts of the Red Fort on the Independence on August 15 but some other events overtook, hence this delay. Nevertheless, I tend to say my mind on the subject. In a customary address every year, PM of India addresses the nation since independence in 1947. PM Modi spoke from the Red Fort for the 10th time ever since he took the reins of the county in 2014. Before coming to the content, message and crux of the speech, I must add that PM Narendra Modi certainly add colour to the ceremony – meticulously dressed in a traditional Kurta-Pyzama and every time wearing a new style of a colouful turban representing one region or the other. It goes without saying that he is one of the finest orators who can make his audience spell-bound – a Zaduvian Mukarar.

Such speeches ought to present and explain ‘State of the Nation’ and to be meaningful. The incumbent PM is expected to be a statesman who should take the people into confidence including the opposition without caring for the brownie points for narrow political agenda. It is a matter of gratification to note that since independence in 1947, India has come a long way in establishing herself as the largest democracy of the world, one of the fastest growing economies, enjoying demographic advantage, one of the established and growing reservoirs of highly skilled manpower among other favorable attributes. We can safely say that ‘India has arrived but we are yet to go a long way to reach’. The challenges are heavy to remain on track – majoritarian approach, socio-economic inequality, growing political intolerance, growing communal chasm, corruption, political and constitutional immorality, institutional rot, weakening Checks and Balances on the organs of the state that is Executive, Legislature and Judiciary, eroding free and fair media are some of the points which offhand come to my mind. We need to ward off ourselves from these dangers to keep India that is Bharat on rails. It is incumbent on our leadership particularly the PM to uphold the healthy tradition of addressing the nation from the Red Fort to lead the ‘tryst with destiny’ on which we embarked upon on the early morning of August 15, 1947.

In this blog, I would try to capture the essence of the speech of PM Narendra Modi delivered this year from the ramparts of the Red Fort.PM Narendra Modi or may be his speech writers often come out with interesting acronyms which make the speech interesting and explanatory to the general public. I mention here a few such expressions used in the speech this year.

Deviating from the traditional format of addressing the audience as Mere Pyare Deshvashio (dear citizens) or Bhaio aur Behano (Brothers and sisters), PM Modi came with a new format as Mere Parivar Jano. PM Modi is a ‘astute communicator with skills of deliberate wordplay’.

Urged to wage a war on “corruption, dynastic politics and appeasement” – An often repeated assertion of PM Modi to castigate Congress party. Corruption, to my mind is a national malady – Iss Hamam Mein Sab Nange Hain, irrespective of the party. As regards dynastic politics, it is a fact of public life of Nehru-Gandhi family, right from Moti Lal Nehru to Rahul or Priyanka, the family has been fully involved in the freedom struggle and politics and governance of the country’s politics. It does not, it seems, has any adverse effect on the politics of the country. Coming to appeasement, it is clearly aimed to target the minority community as a considered policy of the ruling right wing Hindu outfits. The fact of the matter, to my mind, is that the currently ruling dispensations themselves resort to the so called ‘appeasement’ of the majority community to polarize the society for political gains. It is for the people to understand these political machinations.

PM said that appeasement policies had ‘murdered and destroyed social justice’. He did not explain it how? Frankly I could not understand as to what he wanted to say. The statement seems to be counter-productive and self contradictory. I will be happy if someone can educate me on this.

PM named two major attributes of nation building – unity and national character, describing the latter as a “catalytic agent in any nation’s progress” – Of course, these are some of the important attributes for the development and progress of the country and the society at large as PM Modi himself asserted in the address that we should ‘Reform, Perform and Transform’ to make India a ‘developed country ‘by 2047’, the centenary year of free India. Let us admit that the much needed ‘unity’ is under threat and divisive tendencies are getting strong. We are to arrest this trend – the sooner the better. As regards national character, we are yet get democratic and scientific temper and also just social order. We need to think and shed ‘double talk’ on the caste ridden society and try every best to bring about “Samrasta” as professed and propagated by RSS and BJP.

Stressed on the specific attributes of the Indian reality – ‘Demography, Democracy and Diversity’ – Yes, these are very important aspects of India’s polity. We are set to be world’s largest populated country surpassing China. Now it would be up to ‘we the people of India’ and our rulers to drive ‘demographic dividend’ out of the emerging situation or let the opportunity slip with narrow political agenda. It has a direct bearing on the other two that id Democracy and Diversity. Over the recent years, it has been observed that our ‘democratic credentials’ are getting weakened with institutional rot, constitutional immorality and divisive politics in the ground situation of ‘socio-economic inequality’. Diversity, of course, is the fact of our socio-cultural life with multi-racial, multi-lingual, multi-religious edifice. We are to maintain this as a secular country as stipulated in the constitution of India. It could only be maintained if the majority gives enough and credit-worthy assurances to the minorities and give them due space not only in the polity but also in the socio-economic life of our country – ‘United we stand and divided we fall’ is the catchword which should guide us in the years to come without resorting to ‘camouflaged’ approaches.

PM Modi repeatedly used the lofty dictum of Gautama Buddha “Bahujan Hitaye – Bahujan Sukhaye” in his speech, it seems, as a tactical ploy to address the vote banks. There is no harm in this subtle approach. Buddha, of course, is the flag bearer of Indian tradition and culture.

Communl strife; particularly the recent events of Manipur and Haryana, to my mind, should have got more attention in the speech. Communalism is the biggest threat to the idea and spirit of India that is Bharat. But, it seemed, it did not fit in the strategic thinking of PM Modi. He chose to avail of the opportunity to take political advantage to carry forward his or his party’s political agenda, unlike a statesman. Columnist Rajdeep Sardesai has raised a question on this in an article in the Hindustan Times, “From the Red Fort, PM Modi hinted dynastic politics, corruption and appeasement will be his three weapons for 2024. But after nine years in power, will they work as well as they did in 2014?” Only the time will tell.

India is on the move. PM of the day will address the nation again on August 15, 2024. Let us rise ourselves above the petty political considerations as citizens of a great country. I conclude this with a quote from my icon, Babasaheb Ambedkar, “I do not want that our loyalty as Indians should be in the slightest way affected by any competitive loyalty whether that loyalty arises out of our religion, out of our culture or out of our language. I want all people to be Indians first, Indian last and nothing else but Indians.”